Today, many people simply just don’t give a thought why some people still continue to believe in soul, God, the afterlife, despite all the modern knowledge we have. In fact, there are simply no grounds for such believes, except for ancient superstitious delusions and ignorant conjectures.

Unlike modern people, for ancient men it was very difficult to understand the essence of natural phenomena. Not knowing the nature of many phenomena and events, an ancient man perceived them mostly emotionally, rather than intelligently.

An ancient man could witness such bizarre natural phenomena as the northern lights, lightning, ball lightning, the fall of comets and meteorites, cumulus clouds resembling faces or silhouettes of people and animals, quaint landscapes, forms of stones, rocks, tree crowns, etc. Also, an ancient person could see dreams, get sick and see or hear hallucinations. In a dream or delirium, an ancient person could see a long-dead relative or fantastic creatures. All this caused the ancient man’s surprise, bewilderment and fear.

But having only a primitive superficial knowledge about nature, world and about own body, the ancient man could not somehow logically explain what is happening to him. Therefore, the ancient people began to form an idea about the world of spirits, souls of the dead, fantastic creatures, gods.

Then the ancient man decided that the spirits ancestors and fantastic creatures show themselves and come in dreams for a reason, with some purpose. Ancient man decided that they can influence his life and the surrounding reality: to help or punish. This led to forming of religious ideas.

Religion in its modern form was established when a sustainable cult of a certain god appeared. The main signs that turn a belief into religion are: oral (tradition) or written source (the religious norms fixed in text: names of deities, “prophets”, description of rituals, dogmas and rules), presence of the supreme representative of the cult (high priest, patriarch); religious buildings for the performance of the religious rites (temples, prayer houses, squares, etc.).

Why we still believe in God now

Ancient man could not be guided by the knowledge of the true cause of religion because of his ignorance and his inability to think objectively and logically (that is, the ancient people sincerely believed that the gods help them to send rains, preserve crops, punish them through natural disasters, communicate through various natural phenomena). But modern people can see this belief in soul and God in its real light: to see that all this is nothing but an ignorant delusion and speculations.

Why do modern people remain believers? The fact is that modern people, despite all the achievements of science and technology, remain largely unhappy, many people’s needs remain unfulfilled, and needs – unsatisfied. This is due to both – actual deprivation and social problems, and the constant desire of a person for greater (ideal life, happiness). In many ways people remain unhappy with reality, dreaming of a mythical prosperity that they can not reach.

Religions in abundance and hypocritically promise this prosperity, consolation, retribution for all the “inconveniences of life.” However religions promise all this, as a rule, not here and now and in the next life, in the so-called life after death. And this has its result: ignorant people dissatisfied with life adhere to promises of all kinds of benefits, especially since it takes very little from them to get them – to consider themselves to be a part of one of the religious organizations (sects, confessions), simply to believe “in something just in case, to replenish the statistics of believers, to feed up the religious system (priests and mullahs are fed from the budget due to the fact that believers “need” them).

Why should we not believing in God?

Because all the reasons why modern people believe in God are based on ancient delusions, primitive superstitions, irrational dreams and unfounded fears. These reasons of faith are designed for stupid and weak-willed people, ignorant inhabitants, these reasons are not worthy of serious treatment. The whole faith in God is simply not worthy to be taken seriously. Belief in God is not serious, primitive, ridiculous and stupid.

Though Ash Wednesday is celebrated every year among some Christians most of the people of the same faith spend their whole lives without ever understanding the true meaning and the significance of ash Wednesday. But since the release of Mel Gibson’s blockbuster movie, The Passion Of Christ, the term has grown more popular among the Catholics. With more and more people catching up the trend, the curiosity about Ash Wednesday has been creating waves in the social media platforms.

Meaning Of Ash Wednesday:

Ash Wednesday is primarily a christian holiday, and is the day the Lent period starts, and it falls forty six days prior to Easter. This service was anciently used by Roman Catholic churches to ensure a better understanding of the death and resurrection of Christ through prayer, remorse, fasting and examination. They believed this to be a spiritual path towards enlightenment. The ashes of the blazed palm of the previous year’s Palm Sunday are used by the priests to mark a cross on the foreheads of the worshipers to dissolve the sins of the worshiper. Apart from repenting for their sins a worshiper even prepares for the end of his life on Ash Wednesday.

Significance Of Ash Wednesday:

Ash Wednesday marks the beginning of the Lenient period for the Catholics and it is one of the most important dates in the biblical calendar. The Jewish tradition that has stood the test of time signifies preparation and involvement. The practice includes marking of the head, with the ashes which signifies that man shall return to dust of which he made of. Ashes also act as symbols for remorse and grief for one’s own wrongdoing and sins. The ashes also remind the worshipers of their morality, and their inferiority to the supreme power. In also marks the beginning of the phase for the sinners and the people who lost their faith to repent and rejoin the church. The worshipers demonstrate their remorse through fasting during Lent, and the requirements of fasting has to be followed as laid out by the Code Of Canon Law. Every catholic over the age of fourteen has to avoid meat meat on Fridays , Ash Wednesday and Good Friday, Catholics during this period eat only one meal per day.

Biblical Significance:

Though it is not specifically mentioned in the Bible, it mentions that sprinkling ash over oneself is a mark of sin. As in the case of Mordecai or Daniel, the bible continuously points at people repenting for their sins in ashes and dust. The bible asks the worshipers to not display any sign during fasting and keep on their path of helping the needy.

And though Catholics must be ready to repent and fast for God whenever required, Ash Wednesday have it’s own significance.

A church, as an establishment of a certain religion, operates on many different levels. First and foremost, these represent the views and practices of the religious groups that operate them. Aside from this, they offer services to their parishioners on a predefined schedule, while many churches also have an additional open door policy for everyone. But, while many aspects of operating a church are directly connected to its religion, there are also those which are purely connected to the ideas from the domain of business. Here, the biggest one comes in the form of the dilemma many churches have – how to attract new parishioners into their flock. Fortunately, for any religious establishment that desires to attain this, there are ways how some key business practices, mainly from the domain of marketing, can be successfully applied here. Here are the most important elements that will help a church bring in new parishioners.

Using Social Media

Every business utilizes social media in the modern day. Thanks to networks like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and many others, people can stay in touch with any brand they want. The same applies to a church, which is why every aspiring church community should have its own social media accounts. Here, they can spread their positive message and allow for a huge range of people that use social media to get in contact with them. Importantly, this will also allow the church to reach young people as well.

Using Signs and Banners

A church is a physical location and many people walk by or drive by it on a daily basis. Here, a huge potential for brand marketing can be found. With the use of physical message platforms like signs, banners, and banner displays, a church will be able to reach the people who are in daily contact with their location. This way, anyone who becomes interested in their message can simply walk in an eventually become a part of the same parishioners. Signs and banners also have an advantage of being very affordable, especially when it is taken into consideration how many people can see their message.

Participating in Local Media

Representatives of a church should never shy away from publicity. As active members of a religious group, but also the same community at large, they are often very well versed in the occurrences in the same area. Because of this, they will be regularly contacted by media representatives like journalists and TV hosts who will want their opinions. A smart marketing move would be for them to accept these inquiries with open arms, mainly because of the media’s ability to reach people in the same community. If the residents of a certain neighborhood, for example, regularly see a priest on the local TV, they will be more inclined to give a try what the same religious group and their church have to offer.

With these business and marketing ideas, any church will stand a lot better chance of attracting new parishioners to their religion.

Today, some religions have made its way into several global conflicts, and there’s no doubt that religion can be very divisive and even cause harm. Having said that, numerous religious groups, churches, and individuals across the world show day-to-day demonstrations that faith can provide strong spiritual wisdom, be the primary agency for significant service to world and promote peace in every nation.
Without further ado, lets us look at ten examples of how religious groups and churches are doing good throughout the world in no particular order.

1. Teaching families essential tools for the disease prevention
The Compassion United Kingdom is a Christian organization which runs several charities, including Child Survival Programme that works with the caregivers and expecting mothers to avert malnutrition by teaching them how to care better for their kids and prevent illnesses.

2. Giving previously gang-involved youths a second chance
Established by Greg Boyle in 1988, Homeboy Industries now supports previously gang-involved and imprisoned youths transition into a prosperous and healthy livelihood. On top of providing social services, including tattoo removal, mental health services, case management, and much more, Homeboy operates many social enterprises.
One such initiative is Homegirl Cafe and Catering that employs past criminals, usually in their first actual jobs, helping them through an eighteen-month training program for the career development.

3. Inspiring children to care for environment through the immersive workshops
The Teva Learning Center often hosts immersive retreats and classes focused on Jewish commitment to the Tikkun Olam — healing the world. They also provide a series of the youth programs aimed at encouraging children to recognize the beauty in a natural environment and always work towards sustainability in their communities.

4. Distributing mosquito nets throughout African countries to prevent malaria
The Lutheran Malaria Initiative funds and offers education and bed nets for the malaria prevention Mali, Tanzania, Kenya, and Uganda. So far, the project has already attained 2.4 million individuals, according to its website, and there are plans on spreading out to Burkina Faso, Ethiopia, Madagascar, Guinea, Nigeria, Ghana and Niger in the future.

5. Providing support groups and training for individuals with disabilities in Sierra Leone
Established in 2010 by a special group of the concerned Christian women, The Women of Hope International works with individuals living with various disabilities in Sierra Leone. It operates the HOPE center in Makeni, Sierra Leone that offers meetings, support groups, training, and the career development to many women in the entire community.

6. Making the LGBT rights a crucial matter of religious freedom
In April, the UCC (United Church of Christ) did file a very significant lawsuit against state of North Carolina for what the churches considered a violation of the freedom of religion. The law of the state makes it a crime to do a wedding event for a couple who doesn’t have a license that the UCC argued the infringes upon the clergy’s freedom of religion.

7. Bringing different high school students together for the multicultural training
Agencies of Aga Khan Development Network partnered with Jamati Institutions of Ismaili Muslim community to establish a leadership program for the high school students -Global Encounters. In fact, this month-long program engages students in the workshops focused on leadership, service, and culture.

8. Sending the humanitarian assistance to the disaster regions
Khalsa Aid is a Sikh humanitarian organization which sends relief to the disaster areas. The group recently served in the Haiti following a devastating earthquake in 2010 to collect sleeping bags and dry foods for the thousands of families displaced.

9. Advocating for the homeless and poor through affordable housing
Back Bay Mission always tries to meets the basic needs of those suffering due to high poverty and its effects while creating pathways to the social justice. One way they achieve this is through an affordable housing initiative that assists homeless families, and people secure, safe, and affordable housing.

10. Creating and supporting an online community of the social justice activists
The Faith-based Regeneration Network is a distinct online resource for the religious, social action and the community development. The website of the group organizes resources and information about social justice events and activities in the United Kingdom.